COMING back from the brink of closure, children and staff at Daisychain nursery are celebrating a bumper year.

Just 12 months ago, parents were left stunned when they were told the childcare unit in Grangetown was to close because initial Government funding had dried up.

But supporters of the unit, which is attached to Grangetown Primary School, set up a petition to save the nursery and pursuaded Sunderland City Council to keep the service going. And things have gone from strength to strength.

Manager Catherine Heslop said not only has the number of children using the Spelter Works Road nursery risen from 26 to 51, work has just begun on creating a £40,000 outdoor classroom and playzone.

Catherine said: “It was an awful time, but now things are totally different.

“We have turned things around in a short time and it is very exciting.

“I couldn’t have done it without the parents and the dedication of the staff, who stuck by the nursery all the way. I would like to say a huge thank you.”

After the nursery was saved, parents and grandparents set up a Friends of Daisychain supporters’ group and have spent the year, along with staff, holding fund-raising events.

Catherine said: “We are not just a childcare or babysitting service, we are a community facility and have supported a lot of people, especially young mums, so they can progress on to training courses and turn their lives around.

"Thanks to a city council grant, work started this month on transforming the outdoor area.

Catherine said: “The children are fascinated by the work going on. We are making it into more of a natural play area and rather than swings and slides, we will have a teepee and lots of sensory equipment, such as a big sandpit and mud pit.”

She said there will also be a wooden house built on a hill where the children will be able to look out to sea from the windows.

Daisychain also secured a grant for £2,000 from Back on the Map and has used the money to buy wellies, raincoats, hats and umbrellas so the children will be able to make the most of their new outdoor facilities.